Clock



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CLOCK Filed March 22, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented June 30, 1953 CLOCK Charles Hilaire Henri Rodanet, Neuilly-snr-Sei'ne, France, assignor to Etablissements Ed. Jaeger, Levallois-Perret, Seine, France, a company Application March 22, 1951, Serial No. 216,984

' In France March 29, 1950 (Cl. 58--l26) 1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to improvements in clocks, notably of the type in which the conventional hands are replaced with movable trans parent discs bearing a distinguishing mark or index.

According to this invention, each disc is journaled for loose rotation about its pivot and driven thereby through a pin, and also guided with a certain clearance along its peripheral edge running in an annular groove formed in the clock framing.

According to a characteristic feature of the invention, each driving pin is smply inserted on its driving pivot and engages with its bent free end an off-centered aperture formed in the corresponding disc.

The affixed drawings forming part of this specification illustrate diagrammatically one practical embodiment of the invention given solely by way of example.

In the drawings:

1 is a vertical axial section of an arrangement for mounting and driving transparent discs of the kind specified above on a clock.

Fig. 2 is a front view of a fixed disc.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the movable disc indicating the minutes.

' Fig. 4 is a front view of the other movable'disc indicating the hours.

Fig. 5 is a front view but at a reduced scale of the assembled clock illustrated in Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a front view of the dished plate which forms the background of the dial.

The clockwork or back casing of the clock consists of a frusto-conical plate I having its greater diameter open and its bottom wall adapted to support a clockwork illustrated only through its dash-and-dot contour 2.

The axis of the casing is aligned with that of the cannon pinion and set at an angle from the horizontal.

The casing l, bears through its peripheral flanged edge 4 against a cover plate 6 acting as well as a background plate to the clock dial. The plate 6 is formed with a central aperture 62) and a thin circular line 6a is drawn or printed on the concave face of the plate 6 around the aperture 5b and concentrically thereto. Both edges 4 of casing I and l of plate 6 are formed with coincident perforations for assembling screws II. In addition, the edges 4, I have the same outer diameter and both fit closely in an annular recess 5 formed in a ring frame 3. The members 4, 7 and 3 are assembled by means of the same screws H passing through corresponding holes in the ring frame 3. The latter is formed at its bottom with screw-threaded holes aligned with smooth holes provided in a foot member ill. The members I 0 and 3 are thus assembled by means of screws l2 of which one only is shown in Fig. 1 for illustrative purpose. Thus, the clock is held firmly on the foot member Ill.

The convex face of plate 6 is turned inside the clockwork casing l.

The sleeve [3 consists of a blind cannon threaded on the center pivot l3a driven by the clockwork 2. A driving member I5 formed with an eyelet I4 is inserted on the sleeve [3 and has a driving pin bent at right angles to the pivot axis and engaged in an off-centered perforation I6 provided in a flat transparent disc IT. This disc I! has a central aperture I8 of a diameter sufiicient to allow the sleeve Hi to pass freely therethrough. The disc I! is so dimensioned that its outer edge Ha is movable with a certain clearance in a circular recess I9 forming a shoulder portion 19a in the clock ring frame 3. The disc I! rests on sleeve 13 and pin F5, is rotatably driven by the latter and guided along its edges by the shoulder portion 19a.

The flat transparent disc 11 is formed near its center and concentrically thereto with a circular line 20 having a diameter slightly smaller and a thickness slightly greater than the aforesaid line 6a. The disc I! also carries a reference mark 2'. provided with a point indicating the minutes.

The sleeve l3 has threaded thereon in the conventional manner the hub or cannon 23 of an hour cannon Wheel, of which the cannon portion only is shown in Fig. 1. The wheel cannon is formed with a shoulder portion acting as an abutment to an eyelet 24 of a driving member 25 inserted on the wheel cannon. The driving member comprises in addition to the aforesaid eyelet, a pair of symmetrical driving pins adapted to support and drive another movable flat transparent disc 26. The disc 26 has a central aperture 21 engageable freely by the shoulder portion of the wheel cannon 23 and a pair of offcentered notches 28 engaged by the bent driving pins of the driving member 25. The outer edge of the disc 26 is guided in a circular recess 9 formed in the ring frame 3 and having a front wall consisting of a shoulder portion 9a and a back wall consisting of the cover plate 6. It is therefore apparent that the manner in which both discs I! and 26 are guided is similar, a certain clearance being allowed along their peripheral edges.

The dimensions of the perforation 21 and. ex-

3 tensions 25 thereof are such that the disc 25 may pass freely over the driving pin ill on assembling the clock.

The disc 26 has also drawn or printed near its center an eccentric circular line 29 having a diameter and thickness intermediate between those of lines 20 andfia. Besides, this disc carries a reference mark 30 for indicating the hours.

A fiat transparent disc 3| is fitted in a circular recess 32 provided in the front inner edge of ring frame 3. This disc 2| is held therein by means of a fiat ring 33 fitting a corresponding recess 34 formed in the front surface of ring frame 3. This flat ring 33 has screw-threaded holes which, when assembling the clock, are engaged by the screws H passing through the smooth holes in ring frame 3. The disc 3| is formed near its center with a circular line 35 having a smaller diameter and a greater thickness than the line 20. Concentrically and inside of this line 35 the disc 3| carries a circular opaque mask 36 in which a moon crescent 31 appears. This crescent 31 is also opaque but may be gilded whilst the remaining portion 36 of the mask is black or dark blue. The visible wall portion of the cover plate 6 is for example deep blue and spangled with gilded stars. This star studding may also apply to the transparent discs ll, 25 and 3|. The minute index may consist of a :gilded comet fixed on the disc H and the hour index may consist of a picture representing Saturn with its ring.

The signs and figures indicating the hours and minutes of the dial are carried by the fiat ring 33 forming a kind of Wheel surrounding a conventionalized illustration of the heavenly vault. The pivots are concealed by the central mask 36 while the color and concavity of the background plate 6 give the optical illusion of a considerable depth emphasized by the arrangement of the circular lines 36, 20, 29 and 6a of progressively increasing diameter and also by the several star-studded surfaces disposed at different depths.

The operation of the device is obvious and does not require any detailed description. The safety resulting from the fixation of the movable discs through driving pins simply inserted on the wheel cannon and inner sleeve prevents any breakage of toothed wheels as might be caused by the inertia of the discs if the latter were mounted rigidly on the pivots. In addition, the assembly described is very simple and economical.

It will be readily apparent to those conversant with the art than many alterations may be brought to the specific embodiment described and illustrated herein by way of example without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. More particularly, the ornamental elements shown and described may be inspired from other sources, as desired.

What I claim is:

In a clock, in combination, a transparent front plate, an opaque black plate, a circular support having fixed thereto said plates and constituting the clock dial, a clockwork secured to the rear face of said opaque back plate and having a driv ing pivot passing through a central perforation in said back plate and extending into the interval between said plates, said plates and said support being set at an angle from the vertical, a sleeve fixed on said pivot, a cannon wheel mounted on said sleeve and having a shoulder cannon portion, one driving member formed with an eyelet inserted on and resting against said shoulder cannon portion, a pair of symmetrical driving pins formed integrally on said driving member, another driving member also formed with an eyelet inserted on said sleeve, a single driving pin formed integrally on said driving member and extending from the pivot axis by a shorter dis-' tance than said driving pins of said one dri ing member, a first transparent intermediate disc ar ranged between said plates, carrying the hourindex, formed with a central hole for allowing said cannon portion of said cannon wheel to freely therethrough and comprising a pair of off-centered perforations engaged by the driving pins of said one driving member, the outer edge of said first disc being guided by a bearing shoulder portion formed in said circular support and can other intermediate transparent disc arranged be tween said plates, carrying the minute index, formed with a central hole for allowing said sleeve to pass freely therethrough and comprising off-centered perforation engaged by said single driving pin of said other driving member, the outer edge of said other transparent disc being guided by another bearing shoulder portion formed in said circular support.

CHARLES HILAIRE HENRI RODANET.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 248,935 Lewis Nov. 1, 1881 402,972 Rime May 7, 1889 1,159,162 Besson Nov. 2, 1915 2,153,004 Rodanet Apr. 4, 1939 2,202,581 Hammer May 28, 1940 2366.312 Heintz Apr. 5, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 257,783 Switzerland Apr. 1, 1949 495,047 Germany Aug. 19, 1933 

